Matt Damon and Ben Affleck to adopt inclusion riders for new projects

by WENN

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon at the Project Greenlight Season Four Premiere of "The Leisure Class" held at The Theatre at Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, California on Aug. 10, 2015. (Adriana M. Barraza/WENN.com)

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are adopting inclusion riders for all future projects at their production company Pearl Street Films.

Inclusion riders, contractual clauses whereby actors or executives can demand diverse cast and crew members on a project, hit the headlines earlier this month after Best Actress winner Frances McDormand asked stars to adopt them in her Oscar acceptance speech.

Last week, Michael B. Jordan announced his company would be adopting the riders, and on Tuesday Fanshen Cox DiGiovanni the Head of Strategic Outreach at Pearl Street Films, tweeted Michael stating Ben and Matt would follow suit.

DiGiovanni, an actor, producer, and educator, also serves on the board of The Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, the think tank founded by University of Southern California professor Dr. Stacy L. Smith, who first proposed the concept of the inclusion rider.

The move comes after Damon apologized for comments which appeared to downplay the seriousness of the sexual misconduct allegations which have rocked Hollywood. Affleck also apologized after he was accused of touching a female presenter's breast during a 2003 TV interview.

Jordan, 30, was the first major star to formally announce he planned to heed Frances' call to support inclusion riders.

"In support of the women & men who are leading this fight, I will be adopting the Inclusion Rider for all projects produced by my company Outlier Society," he wrote on Instagram. "I've been privileged to work with powerful woman & persons of color throughout my career & it's Outlier's mission to continue to create for talented individuals going forward."